


Reintroduction

by ahappyphil



Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: 2019, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-09
Updated: 2019-09-09
Packaged: 2020-10-13 11:36:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,278
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20581871
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ahappyphil/pseuds/ahappyphil
Summary: Family holidays and second chances





	Reintroduction

He’d agreed to go on this family holiday, mostly out of a sense of obligation. That underlying feeling of “I suppose I owe this to you after twenty seven years of shutting you out and not letting you know me”. Also, a late summer French holiday isn’t exactly a burden, even if it’s not with his preferred travel companion. 

It’s more complicated than that, they all know it. No one is holding a grudge at Dan’s past unwillingness to be vulnerable. Which he supposes was the first hurdle, the initial awkwardness, of which there was far less than he anticipated. Maybe he doesn't give his family enough credit. 

His mum is taking every opportunity to tell him how happy she is that he’s here. It’s nice. It wraps him up in that feeling of maternal love he stopped associating with her years ago. Maybe it never left, maybe he just didn’t let it in. 

Even Adrian has been pleasantly chatty and behaving almost sibling-like. It’s nowhere near what he’s seen with Phil and Martyn, but that’s a pretty unfair comparison. He knows he hadn’t exactly been doing his part to maintain their relationship either. 

He even invited Dan along on his sunset jog around the countryside. He declined. Brotherly bonding has its limits, and the line is attempting to keep up with a 21 year old with an invincibility complex. 

Which is how he found himself here, lounging on the back porch of their private villa, drinking wine that was entirely too expensive, and watching the sunset with his mum. 

A comfortable silence fell between them not too long ago. It’s been nice. Just appreciating the beauty of nature in peace. A few years ago, this would have been too much- too much of nothing, no distraction from his own head. 

It’s a testament to how much he’s grown. 

Quiet sunset views aren't terrifying anymore, just like the knowledge that the woman sitting next to him, that everyone with an internet connection, knows he’s gay. He’s still shocked sometimes at his lack of fear about that fact. 

Karen shifts slightly in her seat to turn towards him. Maybe she isn't as fond of silence, maybe she’s got her own spiral of thoughts far too consuming to properly soak in the pink and orange sky. 

She gives him a small smile and pats his leg. 

“So”

Dan turns his attention to her, a seeping feeling that the next part of this sentence is going _somewhere_

“Tell me about Phil”

Oh. They’re doing this now. He knew it was coming at some point; how could it not? 

“Mum, you’ve met him. Like a bunch of times”

This part is still a little terrifying. Dan’s natural instinct is still to protect what he and Phil have at all cost. There’s still that reflex to keep the walls up, to maintain all levels of privacy. It’s going to take time for them to come down. 

He reminds himself that this is part of letting those walls down piece by piece, and this is a good place to start. His mum is safe. She’s not going to bite, she’s not going to ask anything overly invasive, or make him feel uncomfortable. 

“You know what I mean, dear”

He does.There’s still quite a bit of residual guilt surrounding all those times she’d met him under the pretense of being just a mate. He figures he owes her some information. That’s what this trip is about right? A reintroduction of sorts. 

“What about him”

“Darling, I want to know you. I want to know about your life, and it’s pretty apparent he’s a large part of it”

He can do this. He takes a deep breath and tries very hard not to smile too wide at the idea of talking about Phil in any context. He won’t let himself be that obvious.

“He’s my best friend. He understands me like no one else ever has. I can’t even explain it, we just click I guess”

Memories of first meetings and first kisses and finding out just how well they fit start swirling in his mind. He can’t tell if it’s the nostalgia or the wine that makes him want to describe in detail just how wonderful Phil is in every way. 

Before he can, she clears her throat to gain his attention. 

“How long?” She sounds almost pained to ask, like any answer is going to sting just a little. 

“Since the beginning. Coming up on ten years soon”

He catches her subtly wiping a tear away as she nods in understanding. 

“Blimey, you must like him a bit”. She lets out a wet laugh. 

Dan is fully aware of just how deep his dimple is at the moment. If Phil were here, he’d poke it and tell him Derek was on display. 

“Kind of love him a bit...bit more than a bit actually”

“I’m happy you found him, love”. It sounds sincere.

She takes a long swig of her drink, but give him a warm smile. There’s still pain behind her eyes, like every word out of his mouth is bittersweet. He’d never considered how much it would hurt her to know what she’d missed out on.

“I’m sorry it took me a bloody decade to tell you. For what it’s worth, he’s pretty desperate to get to know you too”

That seems to make her a bit happier. 

“Tell him he’s required to attend at least one family gathering a year from now on. Your grandmother is already using him as an excuse for real desserts at Christmas. Says she can’t have guests thinking we only serve rabbit food. Don’t tell your brother”

The thought of Phil and Nana teaming up to fight against vegan cakes makes his heart burst a little. He’d charm her in an instant, and she’d have him in the kitchen taste testing batches by day two. Phil has that way about him. 

“He’d definitely take her side on that one” 

She puts her glass down and curls up at bit in her chair. “He must be something special to have you all starry eyed over there”

Damn his inability to keep a poker face. His expressive face always gave him away as a child as well. No use denying it, he supposes. 

“He is”

It feels almost cathartic to let her in on it. It’s nice to tell her he’s happy and to talk about the most important person in his life with someone who worried about him for so many years. He didn’t realize how good it would feel to let her in his world again. 

“Well if you ask me, he’s pretty fucking lucky himself. He’s got himself one hell of a man. You’re a good person with a good heart, and I’m so proud of you”

This is crossing into unknown emotional territory that he’s not nearly drunk enough for. Luckily, she seems to sense it too. 

She pats his shoulder as she untangles herself from the chair. “C’mon, I snuck some fancy cheese when we went to the shop. Gotta get rid of the evidence before I get a lecture from my youngest”

He’s learning they’re more alike than he’d ever noticed. He’s starting to realize he wants to get to know her too. 

As he collects their empty glasses and heads to follow her to the kitchen, he checks his phone and responds to Phil’s string of Norman updates and questions on how it’s going.

_ it’s actually rlly nice. she’s cool. talked about you _

_ o.O should i be concerned _

_ absolutely. skype in an hour? _

_ of course :] its tradition x _

_ <3 _

**Author's Note:**

> Reblog [here](https://ahappydnp.tumblr.com/post/187604094541/reintroduction-g-12k-summary-family-holidays)


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